Sermon
Rethinking the New Heaven and New Earth: Restoration, Not Destruction
Publisher transcript
Transcript
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Welcome to the Kingdom Family Podcast, where
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we rediscover our identity as sons and daughters
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of Yahweh and learn to live the life of the Kingdom.
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Let's jump in to today's episode. Welcome back.
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We are on, I believe this is week 12, maybe,
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of rethinking the end times. We are coming to
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an end to this. And just a reminder for... all
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of my listeners that once this series ends in
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the month of July and August we are going to
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take a break. That will give me a couple months
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to do some recording and stuff and kind of play
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a catch -up game to where I can be ahead on future
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things and hopefully not have to take any more
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months off but can just continue on with uploads
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of... whatever I feel Holy Spirit lay on my heart
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and how to move forward with that. So again,
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I know we're good this week. I know at least
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have one more week in this and I gotta go looking
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forward at my notes to see what else is here.
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But I know for certain July and August, there
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will be no more new episodes for those two months.
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And like I said, hopefully that'd be the last
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time we do that kind of break. We'll just transition
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seasons. as we go moving forward. But this week
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I'm excited. We get to talk about the new heaven
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and the new earth idea. This whole thing has
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been fun for me to teach. Again, there's so much.
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You can go so deep inside of this and I hope
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if this interests you and you want to learn more,
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you know, go study for yourself. Go sit with
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Holy Spirit. Look at some different material.
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Go study some of these ideas for yourself. I've
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studied this to a point enough to where um This
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is what I believe as far as end times are concerned.
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I do not believe that we're in the last days
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I don't believe in a rapture. I don't believe
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in a single Antichrist rising up and Doing all
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this I don't believe the 666 theory. I believe
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every lot of this stuff is symbolism And when
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you have what I hope my teaching has done is
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given you hope for a brighter future, a brighter
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tomorrow and not look to doom and gloom. Again,
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one of my concerns in the church realm that I've
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grown up in is we seem to use darkness as an
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indication that the end is near. And my point
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of view, I think I said this early on is if There
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is darkness that simply means the light has not
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been turned on and my friend you and I are that
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light plain and simple So I want you to understand
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today that the new heaven and earth in revelation
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is not about god destroying creation But renewing
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it bringing restoration healing in god's presence
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fully Among his people and as i've done in some
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of the previous episodes. I want you to just
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take a minute and think that when you think about
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the end of the world what comes to your mind
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what emotions begin to rise up inside of you
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um a lot of people talk about destruction chaos
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fear judgment that kind of thing um and many
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people assume the bible ends with destruction
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or something but revelation does not end with
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destruction it ends with restoration so i want
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us to really consider what does the new heaven
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and new earth mean and so i want to read to you
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from revelation chapter 21 and i'm going to read
Revelation 21 chapter mention
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out of the passion and the mirror because i think
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it's important and in the passion translation
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it says then in a vision i saw a new heaven and
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new earth the first heaven and earth had passed
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away and the sea no longer existed now I want
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you to remember in previous seasons what we talked
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about sea representing. Go back and listen to
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some of this. That's important for you to just
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grab hold of. So when you hear this, this is
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not saying the oceans that we have no longer
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existed. Go back and listen. What did the sea
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represent? I don't want to just give you answers
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all the time. I want to make you go do the legwork,
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go study to show yourself approved. Habakkuk
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is a really important verse to me. It says, my
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people perish for lack of knowledge. What you
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don't understand, well, you can misuse. It can
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hurt you. It can harm you. So I really encourage
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people to do their own research, go do your own
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studying. I want to break this kind of man of
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God idea that you just come running to a pastor
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or someone like me, whatever, for all of your
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answers. Are they there to help you and to guide
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you and to give you wisdom? Certainly, but they're
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not God Okay, and I want to number one I want
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to help pastors and leaders understand and take
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that that burden off of them That you as a child
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of God can hear from heaven on your own What
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we should be doing is simply confirming that
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what you're hearing. So again go look up if you
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don't remember what the sea is go look it up
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what did it symbolize what did it mean and then
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out of the mirror translation it says then i
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saw a new heaven and a new earth for the age
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of the previous heaven and earth had passed away
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also the sea was no longer present now i want
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to go from there and now i want to go back to
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reading isaiah chapter 65 because this is isaiah
Isaiah 65 chapter mention
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65 talks about the new heaven and new earth hang
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with me for a little bit because we're gonna
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go from about verse 17 to verse 25 so just hang
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with me and it says look I am creating entirely
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new heavens and a new earth they will be so wonderful
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that no one will even think about the old ones
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anymore as you wait for the reality of what I
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am creating be filled with joy and an ending
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gladness look I am ready to create Jerusalem
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as a source of sheer joy and her people in absolute
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delight I will rejoice in this new Jerusalem
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and find great delight in my people. You will
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no longer hear the sound of weeping or cries
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of distress. No baby will die in infancy there
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and everyone will live out their full lifespan.
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Now catch this because this means this is not
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like heaven, eternal heaven, because they're
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still dying here. For when centurions die, centurions
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a hundred years old, they will be considered
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youngsters. and anyone who dies earlier will
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be considered of no account. People will build
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their own houses to live in and they will not
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be taken over by someone else. They will plant
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their own vineyards to enjoy and they will not
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be confiscated by someone else. They will live
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long lives like age -old trees and my chosen
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ones will enjoy to the fullest the work of their
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hands throughout their lives. So the implication
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of these two verses is that foreign invaders
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will not overtake the land. and go back and just
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just let's think about this don't shake your
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brain at the door what are foreign invaders this
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is not people from foreign countries this is
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not muslims this is not uh democrats this is
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not what that means at all what are the foreign
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invaders for you and i could it be things such
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as sickness disease cancer diabetes heart issues
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could it be shame guilt, anxiety, depression.
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Could it be those things are foreign invaders
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for us as sons and daughters of the king? It's
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important for us to grab hold of. So it's saying,
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again, the implications Dr. Simmons put in here,
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these two verses is that foreign invaders will
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not overtake the land. Anxiety is not going to
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overtake the land. Sickness is not going to overtake
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the land. It's good news if you hear it right.
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Moving on to verse 23, they will neither work
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in vain for someone else nor will their children
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face disaster, for they will be children and
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grandchildren who are blessed by Yahweh. Before
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they even call out to me, I will answer them.
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Before they finish telling me what they need,
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I will have already heard. The wolf now catch
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this the wolf and the lamb will graze side by
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side And the lion will eat straw like the ox
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and the serpent's food will be dust There will
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be neither violence nor murder or money on my
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entire holy mountain of Zion says Yahweh now
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if you take a wolf and a lamb Grazing side by
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side which one of the two had to change Think
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about this. It's important to understand Now
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I want to go back And look at the definition
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and the meaning of the word new Because in the
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Greek you have two words for new you have neos
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and you have Kinos Kinos is the word that's being
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used in this this intersection And so let me
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talk about that for just a minute because new
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does not always mean brand new replacement It
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often means renewed restored or made fresh think
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of a renovated house as the same structure, just
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restore beauty. So it's important for us to understand
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that God does not abandon creation, he restores
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it, just like humanity. He didn't abandon humanity,
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no, he restored us to the original design. And
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he actually completed that when he hung on the
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cross and he declared it is finished. And that's
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a very important shift for us to make. So let's
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look at Kinos, this is new in quality, nature,
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kind, or character. It is something that is renewed,
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transformed, or unprecedented. It is different
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than Neos. Neos would mean something different.
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Neos would be the idea of a new car replacing
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an old car. Kinos would be a car completely transformed
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into something that it never was before. And
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that's just important for us to grab hold of
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those two definitions. Again, neo -sincanos if
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you want to learn more go study some of these
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words for yourself and understand how our we've
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translated the two different words into the same
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english word but they mean two different things
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so you have to do your own study and your own
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research So having understood the word new, we
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can understand why many scholars argue that John
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in Revelation 21 is not describing God throwing
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away creation and starting over, but it's creation
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being renewed, transformed, and brought into
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its intended fullness. Remember, Romans 8 -22.
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The Earth is groaning and travailing for the
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manifestation of the sons and daughters of Yahweh.
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So what is the Earth asking for it? The Earth
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is asking for you and I, I'm wearing this shirt,
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I don't know if you can see it, Creation Groans,
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for those that's watching the YouTube channel,
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which I've got to do a lot of work on that. But
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I'm wearing the shirt that says Creation Groans.
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but Romans 8 22 tells you what the earth is growing
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for and the earth is waiting for you and i to
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figure out who we are inside of christ and begin
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to speak and declare back to creation who she
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is to release her from the futility of the fall
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of man john does not use neo's heaven and earth
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he uses kynos heaven and earth So the emphasis
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isn't on replacement, but transformation. God
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is not abandoning his creation, he is renewing
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it. So the story of scripture ends not with evacuation,
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but it ends with restoration. All right, so let's
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look at a couple ways that this word is used
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in other places, this kinos word. You can find
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it in 2 Corinthians 5 .17 says, now if anyone
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is enfolded into Christ, He has become an entirely
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new person. That's the word kinos again. All
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that is related to the old order has vanished.
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Behold, everything is fresh and new. Dr. Simmons
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puts it in here. This would include our old identity,
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our life of sin, and the power of Satan, the
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religious works of trying to please God, our
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old relationship with the world, and our old
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mindsets. We are not reformed or simply refurbished.
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We are made completely new by our union with
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Christ in the indwelling of the Holy Spirit That's
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important for us to get together I'm gonna read
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the same verse out of the mirror says now in
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the light of your co -inclusion in his death
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and resurrection Whoever you thought you were
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before in Christ You are a brand new person the
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old ways of seeing yourself and everyone else
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are over acquaint yourself with the new. And
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François de Troyes helps us understand that the
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if here in 2nd Corinthians 517 some verses say
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therefore if anyone is in Christ, it's not a
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conditional statement. This is the conclusion
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of the revelation of the gospel. Mankind is in
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Christ all by God's doing. By using the therefore
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if immediately includes verses 14 through 16.
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If God's faith sees everyone in Christ and His
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death, then they were certainly also in Christ
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and His resurrection. Again, just important stuff
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for us to grab hold of, not just intellectually,
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but experientially. Don't just get this into
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your minds. Allow this to become true. inside
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the deepest parts of who you are. Because Jesus
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did not reveal just a potential you, no, he revealed
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the truth about you so that you may know the
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truth about yourself and be free. Because the
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truth is, you are free. Christ has made you free.
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In the death and resurrection of Jesus, God did
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not redeem a compromised replica of you, no,
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he rescued the original blueprint you created
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in his radiant mirror image just like it was
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in Genesis. We are reconnected with our original
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Genesis through the resurrection of Jesus from
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the dead. The new birth, this new birth endorses
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and celebrates the hope of the ages. God's eternal
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love dream concludes inside of life. Man, this
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is good if we grab hold of it. Then we have 2nd
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Corinthians chapter 3 verse 6 as he alone makes
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us adequate ministers who are focused on an entirely
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new Kynos covenant. Our ministry is not based
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on the letter of the law but through the power
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of the Spirit. The letter of the law kills but
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the Spirit pours out life. I want you to know
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this was fascinating to me because I don't think
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you've ever heard this before but to illustrate
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this on the day of Moses On the day the law of
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Moses was given, 3 ,000 were killed. But on the
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day that the Spirit was poured out on Pentecost,
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3 ,000 people received new life. But the important
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thing for us to note here is that it's not simply
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a recent covenant order, but a covenant of a
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different quality and order. So, let's see where
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we're at. All right, so let's look. Let's consider
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this. Let's consider that God dwells with humanity.
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Revelation 21 3 says and I heard a thunderous
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voice from the throne saying look God's Tabernacle
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is with human beings and from now on he will
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Tabernacle with them as their God now God himself
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will have his home with them God with them will
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be their God So I want you to go back to Genesis.
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In the beginning, God walked with humanity in
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the garden. What was this? It was close. It was
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relational. It was intimate, which tells you
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it was a nearness. And this is what sin disrupted.
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It did not disrupt God's love. No, it disrupted
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our awareness. Again, we have the responsibility
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to ask the question, who changed at the fall?
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God returns to dwell with humanity. Consider
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John chapter one, that the word became flesh
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and dwelt among us. Not far away, not unreachable,
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no, he's near, he's personal, he's intimate,
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he's present right here, right now. The gospel,
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my friend, is about God moving toward humanity,
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not away from it. And then we consider this as
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we talk about new heaven and new earth. Revelation
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21 for says he will wipe away every tear from
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their eyes and eliminate death entirely No one
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will mourn or weep any longer the pain of wounds
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will no longer exist for the old order has ceased
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now What does it mean? There's no more death.
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There's no more mourning. There's no more pain
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Why because creation has been and is being healed
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Imagine my friend a world where grief ends not
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because we leave and do some kind of escape thing
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But because healing finally comes because we
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as sons and daughters Begin to rise up and let
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our light shine and release the kingdom within
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us to the world around us God's final act is
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not destruction. It's healing It's healing my
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friend. Look at the life of Jesus. Look at the
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person of Jesus. It's like Bill Johnson I believe
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Damon Thompson quotes it a lot But be careful
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of anything that you believe about God that you
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cannot find in the person of Jesus So what is
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Revelation describing it's describing a city
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not ruins not emptiness but a vibrant place why
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a city ask yourself why a city what does a city
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represent city would represent community culture
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life relationship not isolation inside the city
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that's where the tree of life returns water of
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life flows healing of nations occurs everything
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is restored The final picture of scripture is
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not escaping. No, it's flourishing life. It goes
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back to Romans 822. The entire universe standing
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on tiptoe yearning to see the unveiling of God's
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glory or sons and daughters. And it's interesting
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to note that the Greek word used for unveiling
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here is the same word for the full title of Revelation.
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The created universe is but the backdrop for
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the dramatic appearing of God's sons and daughters
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unveiled with the glory of Jesus Christ upon
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them, according to Dr. Simmons. He goes on to
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say the verb tense in the Greek text is clear
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that this unveiling is imminent, soon to happen,
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and destined to take place. Christ's glory will
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come to us, enter us, fill us, envelop us, and
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then be revealed. through us as partakers of
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the glory and i love this although god will not
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share his glory with any other we are no longer
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another for we are one with the father son and
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holy spirit through faith in christ you can look
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at john 17 21 through 23 on that one but why
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does revelation say there's no temple because
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god himself is present my friend you are the
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temple now He's not coming to dwell in buildings.
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No, he's coming to dwell inside of you and I
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That's why it's important to go back to previous
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lessons on this and understand that the temple
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was destroyed in 70 AD God is not limited to
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buildings. His presence feels everything no temple
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is needed No temple is needed When God dwells
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fully with his people no temple was needed he
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goes where you go That's good news. If you let
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it if you hear it, right? So our hope is not
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escape our hope is renewal restoration and healing
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and my friend I believe and declared that it's
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happening now What kind of future does God promise
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it's not fear it's not destruction no it is life
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The future belongs to restoration not ruin So
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I want you to think about these God is not abandoning
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creation. He's restoring it The story ends with
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healing not chaos God dwells with humanity forever
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The story of scripture does not end in destruction
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no it ends in restoration It does not end in
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fear, it ends in healing. It does not end with
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God leaving humanity, but with God dwelling fully
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among his people. The future, my friend, is not
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darkness. No, the future is renewal. My friend,
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I hope this helps you. I hope this has given
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you a better outlook on life, a better outlook
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on the future, given you hope for tomorrow. Keep
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diving in keep pressing in don't be afraid to
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challenge the status quo of the religious System
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we have today Don't be afraid to think for yourself.
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Don't be afraid to ask questions Take them to
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the Holy Spirit Allow the Holy Spirit to teach
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you to guide you and to lead you into all truth
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Until next time my friend be blessed Thanks for
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spending some time with me today on the Kingdom
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Family Podcast. If this episode spoke to you,
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take a moment to share it and help someone else
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rediscover their identity as a son or daughter
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of Yahweh. And don't forget, follow the podcast
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so you can stay connected with everything happening
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through Kingdom Family Ministries. Until next
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time, live loved, live free, and live from the
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life of the Kingdom.